Is it possible to have Shingles discomfort/numbness or nerve issues on the opposite side of body?

Thank you for the response. I still get pain on the shingles side of my face. Last week I was at the eye doctor because my eye felt weird, and I was feeling numb just underneath my eye. However there was nothing wrong with either eye, so I am guessing it was just the shingles. Also, I don't remember feeling much of anything before the rash showed up. I was really busy at the time! Thanks again!

Hi Rm 2015 I am trying to

so sorry you are suffering from this disease. Herpes Zoster-Shingles is more than a rash and some pain. For many, it can be a life-altering disease with implications for the future.

This post is meant as a guide regarding the course, treatment, and management of the disease. It is not a substitute for the accurate diagnosis and treatment by a clinician.

I am a Nurse Practitioner in the States. I have had Herpes Zoster-Shingles every three weeks in my right ear, mouth, and throat for 23 years, and more recently extending to my entire right scalp. I have included the knowledge I have learned from the wonderful friends on this forum.

You cannot catch Shingles from Shingles. You can infect an individual who has never had chicken pox from an exposed shingles rash with chicken pox. The “varicella virus naïve” people would include the babies in utero of pregnant women, unvaccinated children, immunocompromised individuals, and anyone who has never had chicken pox. Remember, often times, a pregnant woman often does not initially know she is pregnant.

Shingles is the reactivation of the varicella virus when your immunity had waned.

PRE-ERUPTIVE PHASE

The Pre-Eruptive Phase includes the following:

Sensory phenomena along 1 or more skin dermatomes, lasting 1-14 days. Mine lasted 21 days before the rash appeared!

Phenomena usually are noted as pain or, less commonly, itching, or tingling.

The pain may be preceded and /or accompanied by the following symptoms: headache, photophobia, aches and pains, chills and sweating, mild fever, exhaustion, fatigue, and malaise.

ACUTE ERUPTIVE PHASE

The Acute Eruptive Phase is marked by:

Patchy redness, occasionally accompanied by hardness, in the dermatomal area of involvement.

Swollen lymph nodes adjacent to the rash

Grouped herpetiform vesicles-blisters developing on the red base (the classic finding)

The skin findings typically appear on one side of the spinal cord, stopping abruptly at the midline.

Vesicular shrinkage: Vesicles initially are clear but eventually cloud, rupture, crust, and shrink.

After vesicular shrinkage, slow resolution of the remaining red plaques.

Almost all adults experience pain, typically severe. The pain is described as burning, lancinating, excruciating, agonizing, electric. The slightest breeze can set off agonizing spasms of pain.

A few experience severe pain without a rash. This is called “Zoster Sine Herpete!” Many physicians fail to diagnose this as Shingles!

Symptoms tend to resolve over 10-15 days, but can take much longer! Complete healing of lesions may require up to a month.

Please note:

Shingles can recur many times, can occur on both sides of the body (right and left) and on multiple dermatomes!

Many physicians are unaware of the above paragraph.

Shingles occurring in the head, ie eye and ear and scalp can cause more devastating consequences.

POST HERPETIC NEURALGIA PHN

Post Herpetic Neuralgia PHN is defined as persistent or recurring pain lasting 30 or more days after the acute infection or after all lesions have crusted.

Pain usually is confined to the area of original dermatomal involvement.

The pain can be severe and incapacitating.

Pain can persist for weeks, months, or years.

Slow resolution of pain is especially common in the elderly.

PHN is observed more frequently after cases of Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus (HZO), Ramsay Hunt Syndrome- Herpes Zoster-Shingles Oticus, and in instances of upper-body Shingles dermatomal involvement.

TREATMENT and MANAGEMENT

Antivirals are the Cornerstone of Treatment!

Famciclovir 500 mg 3X daily 7-10 days Most Efficacious Antiviral

Least Resistant to Varicella Virus Easiest to Swallow

Easy Dosing Regimen

Valcyclovir 1000 mg 3X daily 7-10 days Related to AcyclovirSome Resistance to Varicella Virus Difficult to Swallow for some Easy Dosing Regimen

Acyclovir 800 mg 5x daily 7-10 daysOldest Antiviral Most Resistant to Varicella Virus Difficult Dosing Regimen

For those in whom the rash is still spreading, or the antiviral didn’t seem to work, you need to see your physician, NP, PA ASAP and demand a different antiviral and another week to 10 days of the antiviral. The longer duration of a continuation of an evolving rash and/or agonizing pain occurs more often with the head, and those who are immunocompromised. The virus has become more virulent in some, and can be resistant to Acyclovir.

ANALGESICS

For pain control of the excruciating pain that is Herpes Zoster-Shingles, you often have to combine a cocktail of oral medications and topical medications and treatments to work synergistically.

OPIOIDS- Still the most effective painkillers for acute pain

•Oxycodone

•Hydrocodone

•Codeine

ANTICONVULSANTS

•Gabapentin-Neurontin

easier to wean off of than Lyrica

with less side effects

•Pregabalin-Lyrica

ANTIDEPRESSANTS

•Cymbalta

•Venlafaxine

•Amytriptylline-Elavil

•Pamelor

Please note: the dosage of the anticonvulsants and antidepressants need to be titrated up to work effectively! You need to be seen many times for evaluation of your pain.

Often the pain of shingles increases in the second week!

Ask for a referral to a Neurologist or Pain Management Specialist.

OTHER MANAGEMENT TIPS

•ICE OR COOL COMPRESSES- effective in decreasing or numbing the pain, hot showers often increase the pain.

•Lidocaine or Benzocaine creams, ointments, sprays, patches help numb topically. You should use 12 hours on, 12 hours off, so that the nerve fibers do not become conditioned to the use and stop working.

•Corticosteroids creams or sprays to reduce inflammation, use low potency

•Cotton clothes light weight to allow your skin to breathe.

•Do not wear synthetic clothes over your rash as they often do not allow your skin to breathe.

•Cover your rash when in public to avoid transmission of chicken pox.

•You need to rest and sleep!!! You cannot power through this disease! Take off from work! Ask family and friends for help! Exhaustion, Fatigue, and Depression usually accompany this disease.

•Get the Shingrex Immunization

US Available for:

Individuals who have had Shingles

Individuals 50 and over

UK 70 and over

•Google High Lysine Low Arginine Diet and Herpes. The amino acid Lysine is protective in preventing recurrent Herpes Zoster-Shingles, and Arginine triggers Shingles. Chocolate and Nuts and Legumes are High in Arginine!

•Sunlight and menstruation also are triggers for recurrent episodes of Herpes Zoster-Shingles.

I hope this helps you. If you are having frequent episodes of Herpes Zoster-Shingles, please get yourself evaluated.

Best Regards,

Merry Juliana

Thank you for all of that information! It does seem that my eye doctor and general practitioner didn't know all of that. My doctor prescribed Gabapentin to me but I am afraid to take it. As I said, I just weird weird or uncomfortable. I do get painful sensations, but they go away. There are days when I think I am fine, and it is over. But then I realize it is not. Thank you.

HI Merry,

This is great information! I'm actually going to copy and paste it, so I can look back at later if I need to. The scars from my rash are almost gone, and it's been 2 months since I broke out with the rash. I didn't have the blisters at all. The Dr. said we probably caught it early. I also have bouts of diarrhea, which someone also said on here that they also had for quite sometime after they had shingles. Prior to having the shingles I had the worse migraine I ever had in my entire life. I seriously thought i must have a brain tumor or something that was about to explode! It was awful!! I'm really hoping mine isn't coming back already, as I have been having some nerve pain in my back again. 😦 I agree with you in that sleep and rest is the best medicine, and I'd like to add, to stay ad stress free as possible! This has been a real eye opener for me, in that I HAVE to stop worrying/stressing so much about things, and whatever happens happens!

Thank you again for all the information, and to everyone that posts on this forum! When I had my shingles, this forum was the only outlet I had. I dealt with it on my own other than going to the Dr. initially. So, thank you!!

Terri

Hi Tpar!

When I had my first episode, it was literally the worst headache of my life, and I have had induced labor-childbirth and passed kidney stones. I went to two ENTs who thought that I was narcotic seeking...I never asked for pain medications...They never diagnosed the shingles. A neuro-otologist diagnosed it, but he knew I had suffered a sensory-neural hearing loss and excruciating pain for three weeks.

I had facial drooping. It felt like I was being tazed while giving birth via my ear canal.

The lack of support by the medical community and their abysmal ignorance compels me to help on this forum.

Best Wishes

Merry Juliana

I agree! Same here, except I havent had kidney stones, thank God! But yes the pain is unbelievable! I gad not had the shingles yet at that point. The migraine wad 2 weeks prior. Unreal how it can affect so many other areas if your body. I feel like mine was all stress related.

Thank you for your reply! I feel very much alone with dealing with my shingles. My doctor said it could last six months and gave me medicine. that was really it. I am making myself slightly paranoid as the nerve pain comes and goes. I just don't know what I should be concerned with and what is just shingles. I have been trying to read whatever I can about it, but had not found this question answered. Thanks!

In a nutshell , this is what I've been told by the so-called experts:

Shingles is caused by nerves/stress. Also, you CANNOT catch Shingles from anyone UNLESS you've never had Chickenpox! So I HAD Shingles and my husband could not catch them from me because he had Chickenpox as a child. Shingles attacks the nerves in your body and thats why it continues to be so painful long after the rash is gone. You can only have Shingles on 1 side of your body at a time. The ONLY WAY TO STOP THE ITCHING AFTER YOUR RASH IS GONE IS TO STOP SCRATCHING! It's very difficult but it was the best advice I got and once I stopped scratching from itching, the itch was gone within 2 days. I got the first of 2 Shingle shots as soon as my rash cleared up and I got the 2nd one three months later.

I'm sure some people in this discussion would disagree with at least some of my advice but this was my experience and this is how my experience was with Shingles. I'm sure everyone has a different experience but I just hope mine will help you too to understand this awful stuff as it was explained to me and how it played out. Also, everyone is different in how long it takes their bodies to get over Shingles , I took about 4 months to feel better and human again.

Best of health and happiness to you!!!!

Hi Cindi,

You are correct regarding not infecting an individual who had chicken pox previously, but if you have a rash that has not scabbed over or not completely covered, you can transmit the varicella virus to an individual who has never had chicken pox and they will have chicken pox.

A pregnant woman will become infected and transmit the infection to the unborn child.

Also, Shingles can occur on both sides of the body, and does recur, and occur in multiple dermatomes.

Many clinicians miss the diagnosis and under treat shingles.

Best Wishes

Merry Juliana

Thank you for the response. I keep checking and see nothing there. However just my ear area feels kind of weird on that side right now. The inside of my mouth feels okay right now. I think I am just stressing more over it because I am going out of town.

Thank you again. This morning I am back to have discomfort and numbness on the right side of my head. ugh. I CAN NOT imagine having shingles every three weeks. I am so sorry to hear that!

I do plan on having the vaccine at some point. Someone told me that I have to wait six months after having had shingles. The doctor never mentioned it to me at all.

What do you know about getting the vaccine, Merry? Like how ling do they make you wait after having had shingles?

Thanks!